1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to fasteners for securing loads to a track, and more particularly, to adjustable fasteners for securing loads to a track mounted in or near a truck bed.
2. Background of the Invention
Fasteners for securing loads to framing, tracks, and channels have been commercially available for some time. Some conventional fasteners used in automotive track applications will be briefly described below.
Conventional track fasteners have been designed to be removable and/or relocateable along a track slot length. Many of these conventional track fasteners employ a rotatable locking base portion that engages locking teeth inside the track slot or on a locking mechanism to securely retain the fastener within the track slot, and to facilitate relocation along the track slot length. These devices, however, can be difficult to install and use, which detracts from their desirability in consumer environments such as original equipment manufactured (OEM) vehicles (e.g., pickup trucks, mini-vans, sport-utility vehicles (SUV) etc.). Often, conventional track fasteners can only be loaded from an end of the track slot (i.e., their design does not facilitate top down loading), and are thus difficult to replace if broken. Also problematic, many of these fasteners have limited load capacities, such as fasteners available on roof racks, and are thus unsuitable for applications such as truck beds and cargo shipping where heavier loads are placed.
Other conventional track fasteners (e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,410,298, 4,784,552, and Re. 36,681, which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety) have been designed with a center through bolt to apply pressure between a top plate mounted above the track slot and a base plate mounted within the track slot. The bolt can be tightened to “clamp” the fastener in place, thereby securely retaining the fastener within the track slot, or loosened to facilitate relocation along the track slot length. Clamp styled fasteners are often used to temporarily attach rails to the top side of a truck bed for tonneau covers and the like, and are generally relocatable along the length of the track slot. These devices, however, often require a user to have a wrench to loosen/tighten the bolt, which detracts from their ease of use.
Some conventional track fasteners have a track slot with predetermined fastening locations. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,850,769, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. In one such device, predetermined fastening locations are set at enlarged openings in a top surface of the track in which a movable car “drops into” to retain the movable car in that particular position. The car may include a spring biased vertically movable latch to releasably engage the openings. These devices, however, are limited to the specific predetermined fastening locations, which reduces their utility for many applications. Moreover, as with other conventional track fasteners, these devices typically require the car to be loaded into the track slot from one end of the track slot, making it substantially more difficult to repair or replace a given fastener.
Thus, a need exists for an improved track slot fastening device.